


Everything stays

by Shiisiln



Series: Digimon: Succession [2]
Category: Digimon - All Media Types
Genre: Angst, Gen, Minor Character Death, Parent-Child Relationship
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-09-22
Updated: 2017-09-24
Packaged: 2019-01-03 23:26:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,612
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12156951
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Shiisiln/pseuds/Shiisiln
Summary: The original Chosen Children return home. Some things have changed. Some things haven't.





	1. You'll find something waiting

“You're fussing,” Gatomon said dryly as Adora adjusted her bow for the third time in as many minutes

 

“Is it wrong for me to want to look presentable?” Adora said sharply, smoothing out her shirt. “It's been ten years. I want to make a good impression.”

 

Gatomon rolled her eyes. “Whatever you say. But I hardly think your mothers are going to be disappointed in you if you're a little dusty.”

 

“Well, _I_ will be!” Adora said firmly,  and scowled when Gatomon raised an eyebrow at her, unimpressed.

 

Adora sighed.She was trying to put on a brave face for Gatomon, but, well- her crest was sincerity. She could hardly lie to herself, and she couldn't stop her heart from beating almost frantically with nerves.

 

She looked up the road at the humble little house that she'd grown up in, and swallowed hard.

 

For the past few days she and her digimon partner had staked it out, making sure that the same two women still lived there, ten years after Adora had been trapped in the Digital World.

 

Those women were named Renee and Isabella Dubois but Adora knew them as Maman and Mère. A long time ago, they had met in university and decided that the current laws couldn't stop them from starting a life together. Two years (and some DNA donated by a friend) later, Mère had given birth to a little boy they named Adam. Not long afterwards, they had bought this house and moved in, Maman posing as the 'tragic widow' Mère's 'good friend' who was helping to raise her son.

 

Not everything had been easy. There had been fights, and mistakes, and times when people got suspicious of how close the two women were with each other, and tried to pull their little family apart. But that little house was a home full of love, and Adam had never felt alone or unsupported as he grew.

 

There had been a rough spot when Adam fell into the TV one day, and returned months later with a strange cat monster in tow. They had initially reacted with panic, and forbade him from ever returning. But Gatomon had helped him win them over, (it didn't hurt that Maman had a soft spot for cats,) and eventually, they all came to an understanding.

 

In contrast, when Adam told them he wanted to be called 'Adora' and wear pretty dresses sometimes, they hadn't even batted an eyelash. Just held her, and told her that they would love her no matter what. 

 

In the present, Adora almost teared up when she remembered Maman helping her make her first skirt, cooing over her and showing her which lipstick went best with her complexion...

 

And then she had disappeared again.

 

For ten years.

 

Adora took a deep breath, and wiped hastily at her face. “Maybe- maybe I should leave it for a while,” she said, her nerves suddenly overwhelming her. “I don't know if I'm ready yet. To go back, I mean. To- to see them again.”

 

Gatomon's eyes widened and she stepped forward, putting a hand on Adora's knee.“Do you think they're not going to be happy to see you?” she asked. “Adora, they _love_ you. They're going to be _thrilled_.”

 

“Gatomon- it's been ten years,” Adora said quietly. “I don't know _what_ to think.

 

It wasn't like she was afraid. Not really. Mama and Mère loved her, of course they did- but so much could _change_ in ten years.

 

As far as they knew, Adora had simply gone into the Digital World one day and never come back. She hadn't ever been able to explain to them what had happened; the last they'd heard, Jaime's digimon had been resurrected and everything was back to normal. They had been happy for her, relieved that she and her friends were ok.

 

And then, as far as they knew, their child had just… vanished.

 

They must have grieved over her. She could hardly even imagine what it must have been like.

 

“What if… they're mad at me?” Adora whispered, tugging at the hem of her skirt. “I left them for so long, and I never told them- I never said _goodbye_.”

 

“None of that was your fault!” Gatomon tugged on her hand until she knelt down, and wiped gently at her teary eyes. “Oh, Adora, they won't be mad at you, I _promise_. They'll just be happy to hear you say _hello_ to them now!”

 

Adora looked down at her for a moment. _She's right. Of course she's right. You don't have anything to worry about,_ she thought, trying to soothe herself.

 

_And besides,_ her less logical, more cynical side thought,  _if they ARE mad, you still need to deal with it._

 

Then she sighed, and leaned down to give her digimon a hug. “You're right,” she said. “Thanks for the pep talk.”

 

“Anytime,” Gatomon said wryly, patting her human on the back.

 

She got to her feet, dusting off her shirt and adjusting her bow one last time. “Alright- I'm ready,” she said, and walked up onto the deck.

 

She pushed the doorbell before she could talk herself out of it, and stood there, holding her breath. waiting to hear footsteps behind the door.

 

There was a long pause, and then those footsteps finally came. The door swung open before her, and-

 

-and t hey were just  _there._

 

Adora stared up at them in awe.  They looked- they  _looked_ older. There were actual streaks of grey in Maman's hair, and laugh lines around  Mère 's eyes and mouth. 

 

Mère was wearing a nondescript pair of overalls and a white shirt, but Maman- god, that was the same yellow sundress with the flowers stitched along the hem she'd had ten years ago, just a little worse for wear.

 

I t was so…  _surreal_ . For so long, all Adora had was a picture in her head of what they looked like. And here they were- different, but  _real_ .

 

They were _here_.

 

Mère covered her mouth, choking back on a gasp. Maman nudged her aside slightly to walk closer, her eyes wide with disbelief. “A-Adora…?

 

All she could do was nod in answer, tears beginning to fall from her eyes and a wave of relief and desperate,  _painful_ love sweeping through her.

 

Why had she ever been afraid? She loved them, she _loved_ them, and she _needed_ to be back home.

 

She swallowed hard, and smiled up at them, finally finding her voice. “I'm back,” she whispered.

 

All at once they were on her, their arms wrapped around her in an almost suffocating hug, kissing her cheeks and sobbing out their relief and their joy.

 

She pushed her face into the warmth of their bodies and laughed, tears flowing freely down her face.

 

She was home.


	2. Right there where you left it

“You sure you got that?” Ridley asked.

Tentomon hefted the picnic basket up in it's arms. “I'm good, really!”

“If you say so,” Ridley said, and kept walking up the hill.

The sun was shining, the air was clear. It was sunny, but not hot, and there was a cool breeze gently rustled the grass and flowers around their feet.

It was a nice day to finally visit her parents, Ridley thought, brushing the hair that had escaped her ponytail back from her forehead.

It was kind of weird, being back in the real world after so long. There was something tangibly different compared to being in the digital world; just from the air, or maybe the way the sky looked, Ridley could just tell she was in one or the other. It set her a little on edge, to be honest. But she tried not to pay attention to it. 

She wasn't going to be here long anyway.

“It's nice weather for a picnic,” Tentomon offered.

Ridley nodded. “I'm glad it's not raining.”

The two of them walked in companionable silence for some time. They had almost reached their destination at the top of the hill when Tentomon stopped suddenly.

“Are you ok?” she asked.

“Are… are you sure you don't want to live in the human world?” Tentomon asked. “All the others are.”

She blinked down at it for a moment. Then she sighed. “There's no reason for me to stay here. I don't have anywhere to go back to.”

“What about your friends? You could stay with Adam, or Junko and Aiko,” it suggested.

“I wouldn't-” Ridley looked away, swallowing hard. “It just… wouldn't work. Humans don't really do stuff like that.”

“Oh,” Tentomon said quietly.

“Why are you asking?” Ridley asked. “Do you- are you ok with staying at the Base with me?”

“Of course!” Tentomon said immediately, waving a claw at her. “I just… Isn't this place your home? I don't… I don't want you to be unhappy in the Digital World.”

Ridley's eyes softened, and she reached down to pat her digimon on the shoulder. “Tentomon- my home is with you. Yeah, I miss Earth a little sometimes, but I don't belong there anymore. And I'm ok with that.”

“If you're sure,” Tentomon said, his eyes drawing down worriedly.

Ridley smiled at him. He worried too much. “Come on, let's have this picnic.”

“Ok.”

They made it to the top of the hill, where a tall, wide-branching oak stood, casting a long shadow across the grass.

The two of them unloaded the picnic basket, and spread a blanket down in it's shadow. They got out all the food, but before sitting down to eat, Ridley turned and walked towards the reason for her visit.

“Hi, Mom. Hi Dad,” Ridley said, crouching down in front of the graves by the tree. “How are you doing?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> D:


End file.
